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DECISION No

DECISION No. 130/1999/QD-BNN-TCKT OF SEPTEMBER 21st, 1999 TEMPORARILY PROVIDING THE GUIDANCE ON THE SPENDING LIMITS APPLICABLE TO THE ODA-FUNDED RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT AND AGRICULTURAL DIVERSIFICATION PROJECT UNDER THE BOARD OF MANAGEMENT OF AGRICULTURAL PROJECTS

THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Pursuant to the Government�s Decree No. 73-CP of November 1st, 1995 stipulating the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

Pursuant to the Government�s Decree No. 87-CP of August 5, 1997 promulgating the Regulation on the Management and Use of Official Development Assistance;

Pursuant to the Government�s Decree No. 52-CP of July 8, 1999 promulgating the Regulation on investment management;

Pursuant to the Prime Minister�s Decisions No. 691/TTg of August 27, 1997 and No. 461/TTg of September 28, 1999 approving the investment project for development of rural infrastructure in 23 poor provinces with capital borrowed from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the French Development Fund (AFD);

Pursuant to the Prime Minister�s Decision No. 349/QD-TTg of April 25, 1998 approving the project for agricultural diversification with capital borrowed from the World Bank (WB) and the French Development Fund (AFD);

Pursuant to Joint Circular No. 81/1998/TTLT-BTC-NHNN of June 17, 1998 guiding the process and procedure for, and the management of, capital withdrawal with regard to the source of official development assistance;

Pursuant to the Finance Ministry�s Circular No. 88/1999/TT-BTC of July 12, 1999 guiding the financial mechanism of the rural infrastructure project and the Finance Ministry�s Document No. 3837-TC/TCDN of August 5, 1999 on the capital disbursement procedure and spending limits of the agricultural diversification project;

Proceeding from the Finance Ministry�s written agreements No. 2383-TC/TCDN of July 3, 1999 and No. 4719/TC/TCDN of September 20, 1999;

At the proposal of the Director of the Finance-Accountancy Department,

DECIDES:

Article 1.- To issue the temporary guidance on the spending limits applicable to the rural infrastructure project and the agricultural diversification project under the Board of Management of Agricultural Projects, which is attached herewith.

Article 2.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its signing and ceases to be effective after the Ministry of Finance issues a uniform spending regime for ODA-funded projects.

Article 3.- The director of the Ministry�s Office, the heads of the related functional bureaus and departments of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the director of the central project management board/coordination board and the chairmen of the provincial project management boards related to the above-mentioned projects shall have to implement this Decision.

For the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

Vice Minister
NGUYEN THIEN LUAN

TEMPORARY GUIDANCE ON THE SPENDING LIMITS applicable to the ODA-funded rural infrastructure project and agricultural diversification project under the Board of Management of Agricultural Projects

(issued together with Decision No. 130/1999/QD-BNN/TCKT of September 21st, 1999 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development)

A. THE WAGE AND ALLOWANCE REGIME

I. Objects of application: They include the project management boards established by decision of the competent level (the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for the central project management board or the provincial People�s Committees for provincial project management boards) in one of the forms of project management prescribed in the Construction Ministry�s Circular No. 18/BXD-VKT of June 10, 1995. Their managerial apparatuses and payrolls, including contractual employees, must be decided by the Ministry or the provincial People�s Committees.

The payment source must be taken from the funding sources for the operation of the management boards which is deducted from the projects according to the percentage specified in the Appendix attached to the above-mentioned Circular No. 18/BXD-VKT and other agreements (if any) of the Ministry of Construction. For projects on which the Loan Agreement provides that some foreign capital shall be spent on project management, the payment shall be made according to the capital structure percentage specified in the Agreement. Projects which are not allowed to make payment with foreign capital shall have such payment covered by the allocated reciprocal capital.

II. Wage payment regime

1. State officials and employees on the payroll of the management boards shall be paid wages according to the current rank and category regime under the current regulations of the State.

2. Laborers (if any) recruited (with the approval of the Ministry or province) by the director of the central project management board/coordination board or the head of the provincial management board to work under short-term contracts shall be paid as follows:

- Administrative staff: The maximum remuneration for their work shall not exceed 350,000 VND/person/month (26 work days);

- Drivers: The maximum remuneration for their work shall not exceed 400,000 VND/person/month (26 work days);

- Economic or technical experts with university or higher degree: The maximum remuneration for their work shall not exceed 600,000 VND/person/month;

- Interpreters: The maximum remuneration shall not exceed 500,000 VND/person/month;

- Senior specialists and in special cases, if necessary: A higher remuneration shall be decided later by the Ministry.

(The above-mentioned objects shall not be entitled to any wage allowances or other allowances, if any).

III. Levels of project wage allowance

People entitled to wage allowance under this Guidance include State officials and employees on the management board�s payroll, officials sent in detachment by other agencies to participate in the managerial work throughout the project�s duration and part-time officials involved in the ODA-funded project management and execution. Apart from their old wages, they shall be also entitled to the following levels of wage allowance paid from the project�s fund (not applicable to those hired or recruited by foreign specialists):

1. Part-time officials shall be entitled to an allowance not exceeding 30% of their basic wages;

2. Full-time officials of the central project management board/coordination board and the provincial project management boards (including those who are sent in detachment by other agencies) shall be entitled to a wage allowance not exceeding 40% of their basic wages;

Annually, basing themselves on the practical activities of the central project management board or the provincial project management boards, the director of the central project management board or the heads of the provincial project management boards shall draw up an estimate of expenses together with a list of officials entitled to wage allowances prescribed above and submit it to the Ministry (for the central project management board/coordination board) or the provincial People�s Committees (for provincial project management boards) for approval.

Notes: All the above-mentioned levels of expenses for wage allowances must not exceed the total amount of money already approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development according to the plan of each year or each phase of the project.

Total wage and other project-related expenses of the management board must not exceed the percentage deducted for the management board�s expenditure prescribed in Circular No. 18-BXD of the Ministry of Construction and other documents already approved by the Ministry of Construction.

B. EXPENSES FOR PARTICIPANTS IN PROJECT-RELATED STUDY COURSES, WORKSHOPS AND SEMINARS ORGANIZED IN THE COUNTRY

Proceeding from the Finance Ministry�s Document No. 3309-TC/DN of September 16, 1997 on the limits of expenses for training courses and workshops, the specific spending levels are prescribed as follows:

1. Meal allowance: The maximum level of meal allowance for participants in training courses, seminars and workshops organized in Vietnam is:

+ The central level: 70,000 VND/day/person

+ The provincial level: 40,000 VND/day/person

+ The district level: 30,000 VND/day/person

2. The estimate of accommodation expenses for participants in training courses, workshops or seminars shall be prepared by the project management board (the sponsoring unit), which shall be paid from the funding for the training course or workshop. The spending level shall be as guided in the Finance Ministry�s Circular No. 94/1998/TT-BTC of June 30, 1998 and must be accompanied with the full and valid vouchers and invoices according to current regulations.

3. Expenses for training course or workshop participants� traveling between their dormitories and the training or meeting venues shall be paid by the agencies which send their officials to the training courses or workshops as prescribed in the Finance Ministry�s Circular No. 94/1998/TT-BTC of June 30, 1998. Traveling expenses for invited participants shall be paid with the funding source for the workshops, seminars or training courses.

4. Stationery expense:

+ For the central level, it must not exceed: 30,000 VND/person/course;

+ For the provincial level, it must not exceed: 20,000 VND/person/course;

+ For the district and commune levels, it must not exceed: 10,000 VND/person/course.

5. Printing of materials: Payment shall be made according to actual vouchers for the quantity of materials already approved in advance.

6. Remuneration for lecturers: (On the case-by-case basis, one period of lecture may be added with a maximum of two periods of lecture preparation)

+ For the central level: 50,000 VND/hour/lecture;

+ For the provincial level: 30,000 VND/hour/lecture;

+ For the district and commune levels: 20,000 VND/hour/lecture.

In cases where lecturers are specialists who are paid under contract with 500 USD/person/month, they shall be only entitled to working trip, accommodation and meal allowances according to the project�s regulations.

7. Interpretation expense (if interpreters are hired from outside):

+ Normal interpretation: 40,000 VND/hour;

+ Interpretation during workshops and negotiation meetings: 60,000 VND/hour;

+ Interpretation during field trips: a working trip allowance shall be paid in addition according to the project�s regime.

8. Expenses for document translation and typing:

+ English-Vietnamese translation: 35,000 VND/typewritten A4 page with the font size of 14 for common documents (including the typing cost); 40,000 VND/page for important documents (including the typing cost).

+ Vietnamese-English translation: 45,000 VND/typewritten A4 page with the font size of 14 (including the typing cost);

+ Expenses for writing documents and reports in service of meetings, workshops and training courses: The levels of remuneration stated at Point 1 (writing in Vietnamese) and at Point 2 (writing in English) of this Item shall apply.

For the translation of documents with 50 or more pages, the project management boards are requested to sign contracts therefor, check before acceptance and ask for valid payment vouchers for final settlement.

9. Meeting hall rental shall be paid according to the actual costs already approved beforehand and must not exceed 1,000,000 VND/day.

10. Expense for drinks shall not exceed 15,000 VND/person/day.

11. Other expenses (cars for lecturers� and guests� traveling and telephone charges, if any); 10,000 VND/person/day.

(The total expenses for participants in training courses, workshops or seminars organized in the country shall not exceed 200 USD/person/week according to the Finance Ministry�s regulations).

C. WORKING TRIP ALLOWANCE

(field trips)

1. Working trip allowance:

For officials on normal working trips like officials of the central project management board going to work at the offices of the provincial project management boards and vice versa, the regime of working trip allowances prescribed in the Finance Ministry�s Circular No. 94/1998/TT-BTC of June 30, 1998 shall apply.

In cases where officials of the project management board (the provincial project management board or the sub-project management board) make field trips to project sites in remote districts, communes, villages or hamlets struck with difficulties, the levels of working trip allowance shall be calculated as follows:

+ For intra-provincial overnight trips to mountainous, remote and isolated districts, communes, villages or hamlets, the level of allowance shall be 40,000 VND/day;

+ For intra-provincial overnight trips to plain districts and communes, the level of allowance shall be 20,000 VND/day.

2. Other regulations related to the regime of working trip allowances not mentioned in this Guidance shall comply with the guidance in the Finance Ministry�s Circular No. 94/1998/TT-BTC of June 30, 1998.

D. EXPENSES FOR IN-COUNTRY FIELD VISITS AND SURVEYS

If the Agreement contains a content on as well as expenses for in-country field visits and surveys in service of the project management work as well as the project operation management work after the project is completed, before organizing a field visit or survey, the project management board shall have to make and submit an estimate of expenses therefor to the Ministry (for the central project management board) or the provincial People�s Committee (for provincial project management boards) for approval. Below are the spending limits for a number of items:

1. Meal and accommodation money: Participants, guests and assisting staff shall have a maximum amount of 70,000/ VND/person/day for their meals.

Accommodation money: Payment shall be made according to the levels specified in Circular No. 94/1998/TT-BTC of June 30, 1998.

2. Car rental: Package payment shall be made according to car-rental contracts.

(The field visit or survey program must be incorporated in the plan already approved by the Ministry. Above-mentioned are the maximum spending levels serving as the basis for making expense estimates and when making the final settlement, the project management boards must have full and valid vouchers, package payment shall not be allowed).

E. EXPENSES FOR OVERSEAS STUDY, TRAINING AND SURVEY TOURS

All overseas study, training and survey tours must be approved in advance by the leadership of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

1. Expenses for training programs: Training expenses (if any) must be submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for approval according to the current spending limits for training set by the Ministry of Finance.

2. Expenses for meals, accommodation, travel, per-diem allowance, etc. shall comply with the Finance Minister�s Circular No. 45/1999/TT-BTC of May 4, 1999.

3. Final settlement of expenses for delegations going overseas

Delegations going abroad for study tours or training courses, shall, according to current regulations, have to complete within 15 days the final settlement of expenses with the central project management board which shall then make the final settlement with the Ministry (the Finance and Accountancy Department) and the Ministry of Finance.

F. OTHER EXPENSES

1. Vietnamese consultants: If the loan Agreement contains a content on as well as expenses for the hire of consultants, for Vietnamese consultants, the project management board shall base itself on each project�s content, the technical characteristics and the concrete requirements for consultants� qualifications to make a maximum payment of 500 USD/month/person to consultants working for a short-term period for the project and 700/USD/month/person to the head of the consultants� group. If a consultant makes a field trip he/she shall be entitled to a per diem of from 15 to 20 USD/day, depending on the practical conditions of each project.

2. Expenses related to international procurement bidding: shall be paid with the revenues from the sale of bidding dossiers; if such amount is not enough, deduction can be made from the project�s funding source according to the level prescribed in the Construction Ministry�s Decision No. 501/BXD-VKT of September 19, 1996 prescribing the expenses for investment and construction evaluation and consultancy.

The level of revenues from the sale of bidding dossiers: for international bidding, depending on the nature and value of the bid, a bidding dossier may be sold at the minimum price of 50 USD and the maximum price of 500 USD (unless otherwise prescribed by the financing side). For domestic bidding, current regulations shall apply.

Below are a number of specific spending levels related to international bidding:

- Remuneration for bid-marking consultants: 100,000 VND/day/person;

- Expense for drinks: 15,000 VND/day/person;

- Expense for translating bid documents from English into Vietnamese and vice versa (if any) shall comply with the level specified in Point 8, Item B of this Guidance;

- Expense for interpretation during the process of negotiating the international contracts: 60,000 VND/hour and not exceeding 300,000 VND/day;

- Stationery expense shall be as estimated and settled according to actual valid vouchers.

The use and spending of the bidding revenues must ensure full and valid vouchers signed by the participants in the bid marking and be recorded in the accounting books of the unit. At the end of each year the project management board shall have to make a final settlement report together with the unit�s general settlement report.

3. Other arising expenses not mentioned in this Guidance shall comply with the State regime currently in force.

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Basing himself/herself on the above-mentioned spending limits, the director of the project management board shall make a detailed estimate of expenses according to the spending contents, ensuring that it is not higher than the total amount of capital already balanced by the Ministry according to the annual plan and the percentage of expenses for the management board prescribed by the Ministry of Construction.

The source of capital spent on wages, wage allowances and working trip allowances shall basically come from the amount of reciprocal capital. If a project�s Agreement reserves some amount of foreign capital for project management, the expenses for wages, wage allowances and working trip allowances shall be paid according to the levels prescribed in such Agreement.

If the Agreement contains expenses for seminars, workshops, training and field trips within and without the country, their payment shall be made according to the structure and percentage (of foreign capital and reciprocal capital) as agreed upon in the Agreement.

If any problem arises in the course of implementation, it should be reported to the Ministry (the Finance and Accountancy Department) for timely settlement.

For the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

Vice Minister
NGUYEN THIEN LUAN